From getting picked up in the pouring rain in Milan to taking a helicopter ride over Central Park, this American woman traveling the world in search of love has certainly been on her fair share of interesting dates.
Anne Marie Hagerty began a “global search” to find her husband two years ago after splitting from a man she thought she was “going to marry.”
Since then, he has visited 25 countries, exploring the dating scene in each and collecting anecdotes as souvenirs. She posts her dating adventures on her TikTok account (@annemariehagerty), where he has accumulated 50,000 followers.
The 28-year-old spoke to MailOnline Travel about her international encounters and shared details about the most romantic places and locations that failed to capture her heart.
Anne Marie Hagerty (above) has gone out to more than 25 countries on a “global search” to find a husband. She is pictured above in Mykonos, Greece.
MailOnline Travel spoke to Anne Marie about her dating adventures. She told us about the most romantic places in the world and the places that didn’t capture her heart. She is pictured above in Petra, Jordan.
Before her dating quest, Anne Marie was certainly no stranger to travel. She moved from a small town in North Carolina to New York, she traveled by plane everywhere from Japan to Panama, and even lived in India when she was 18. But, she said, dating abroad opened her eyes to “a completely different side” of travel. .
The most romantic places, he said, are New York, Italy and Croatia. Anne Marie described New York as her “number one” place to date. And she said it’s a “big part” of the reason she moved there.
She explained: “The serendipity of the city is magical, as well as being surrounded by millions of people, but finding that special someone makes you feel like you’re living in a super romantic movie.
‘I love grand romantic gestures and unique experiences, and New York is the best place in the world to make those things happen. For example, I planned a date for a guy to ride in a helicopter with open doors over the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, and Central Park.
New York is Anne Marie’s “number one” place to find men. She said that she “feels like you’re living in a super romantic movie.” She is pictured above in the West Village.
Anne Marie said dating in different countries opened her eyes to “a completely different side” of travel. She is pictured on the left in Plitvice National Park, Croatia, and on the right on a beach in Split, Croatia.
And Italy also left her fainting with joy. There she lived one of her ‘best dates’. In Milan, Anne Marie was picked up in the pouring rain by a stranger. “She came up to me and said, ‘I think you’re beautiful, I’d love to take you to dinner,'” she said.
Lake Como was another exciting place. She said it is “without a doubt the most romantic place I have ever been to in my life.” But overall, she said it was difficult to find dates in Italy.
Meanwhile, Croatia, he said, was just as romantic and easier to meet people as Italy. She explained: ‘It has the charms of Italy with a more off-the-beaten-track feel. And people were generally friendlier and more open to dating in the early stages.”
Although not as romantic as some places she has visited, Anne Marie said London was one of her favorite places to date.
Anne Marie is pictured in Notting Hill, London. She stated that the city is one of her favorite places to date in the world.
Anne Marie hasn’t enjoyed the dating scene in every country. She found it difficult to meet men in Switzerland. She is pictured on the left in Lucerne, Switzerland. Anne Marie said: “I have discovered that the Swiss are more insular”
He found an “interesting mix of men” in the UK capital, and wWhile he had some “strange encounters,” he said most were “sweet, reserved and quite gentlemanly.”
What made you stand out? She said: ‘There is a certain sense of global connection and an ability to connect with the world in some way.
‘There is also something sweet for me in British culture. There’s tea, there are Sunday roasts, it’s all very sweet and very familiar.’
But Anne Marie was not impressed by the places she visited. She said that while Colombia is an “amazing country” with “fresh food,” the dating scene is “not for me.”
He explained: “There is a little bit of this throughout Latin America, but it is a very sexist culture that I am not talking about.” Mexico was another place where he found men to be “quite chauvinistic and aggressive.”
She also struggled to connect with men in Switzerland, where she said it was “difficult to get to know people more deeply.”
He added: ‘I found that the Swiss are more insular and tend to stay within their groups. I respect that and they are very friendly, but they are not the most welcoming to newcomers.’
Although Anne Marie visited dozens of countries with the intention of finding a husband, she has not yet found one.
For now, he said, he’s enjoying the process, meeting new people and exploring connections without “high expectations.”
For more information about Anne Marie visit her TikTok www.tiktok.com/@annemariehagerty or Instagram www.instagram.com/annemariehagerty.